The Gift of Knowledge (The Gifts Book 2)

by Jen Gentry

  “What was that all about?” Emily asked Ethan.

  “I have no idea.” Ethan scratched his head. He was as confused as Emily about what had spooked Jorge.

  Soon after, Ethan helped Emily get strapped into her seat on the helicopter and gave her a set of head phones to block out the noise from the propeller before he joined Jorge up in the front seats. Emily prayed again for safety, as the craft took off, she looked over at Phoebe who gave her a thumbs up. Emily responded with a nervous smile and thumbs up back. With a sickening jolt, the helicopter lifted into the air and headed off across the sky above the vast rainforest. Nothing but the rainforest stretched beneath them, for as far as the eye could see. Mile after mile passed, still Emily saw nothing but the deep green of the tree tops. It was then she really grasped just how remote this place was. It seemed as if there was no place for a person to even fit into the lush, verdant land. There were no cities, no buildings and no roads, just as Ethan said. It was easy to see how people could get lost in this endless forest and never make it back out again.

  After what seemed like hours, the helicopter finally landed on an outcropping of rock in a small clearing. Emily, never so happy to be back on solid ground, clung to Ethan as he helped her off the deck. He grinned teasingly at her as the others stared at them.

  “We need to hurry and get the cargo unloaded so Jorge can leave. He’s losing daylight and doesn’t like to fly at night.”

  “Oh yeah, right,” Emily stated as she got her bearings and stomped away from Ethan towards the others. She didn’t see Ethan’s grin widen as she stormed off.

  After everything had been unloaded and Jorge left, Emily got her first real look at the surroundings. She hadn’t noticed the large four-wheelers parked at the edge of the clearing. There were five of them, and each had a small cart attached to the back where the others were hastily loading the supplies.

  Emily stopped Russ as he scurried back and forth between the pile of supplies and four-wheelers. “How much further to the camp?”

  “About ten miles. It takes an hour. Longer if we have any problems.”

  “What kind of problems?” Emily already felt tired and wondered how the others kept up this pace. None-the-less, she determined not to be a burden, so she got busy helping to load the supplies up into the carts. Her question went unanswered.

  Emily rode on one of the four-wheelers behind Phoebe. It proved to be a bone jarring ride down a dry riverbed and then through dense forest. Just before sunset, the team came to a halt on a small ridge and began unloading the supplies.

  “We hike from here,” Phoebe told her as she began strapping bags of supplies onto her back. Worn out, Emily still loaded herself up with as many bags as she could carry and followed Phoebe down a ravine and into a clearing that bordered a swiftly flowing stream. Several large tents stood in the clearing encircling a large campsite and fire-pit. There were tables and chairs set up around the campfire, and even though she and Phoebe were the first of the team to arrive, they were not alone in the camp. Several native men sat around the fire, and others were busy at work on different task.

  When she gave Phoebe a confused look, Phoebe told Emily not to worry, these strange men were hired hands. They helped to guard the camp and move it when the need arose. They also happened to be excellent guides to the area.

  “This is Anke. He is Jorge’s younger brother.” Phoebe spoke to Anke in the Amazonian language of Aymara, calling Emily a greenhorn who needed to be watched over like a newborn baby.

  Emily surprised them both when she joined the conversation in perfect Aymara. “Not to worry, Anke, I may be new but I’m a fast learner.” She could not help but feel a little smug when both of them looked at her in complete shock. Then Emily spoke to Phoebe in Spanish. “I guess you didn’t know that I hold a degree in languages.” She smiled, took her bags to the fire and sat down. Anke watched her walk away. Emily didn’t notice that the man crossed himself like his brother had at the sight of her.

  Later that evening after all the supplies had been unloaded and a dinner of heated canned stew and bread was served, Emily found herself alone in the tent she shared with Phoebe. She was grimy and dirty with grit in her teeth, but she didn’t care about that in the least, as she sought out her cot and pulled the mosquito netting around her. The second she pulled the thin muslin blanket up to her chin she was asleep.

  A couple of tents down Ethan, unpacking supplies in his own tent, heard a rustling outside his tent flap. Then a woman’s voice called out. “Ethan, can I come in? Are you decent?”

  “Yes, Phoebe, come in, I’m decent.”

  “I came to tell you I may’ve hurt Emily’s feelings again,” Phoebe stated as she lifted the flap and let herself into the dimly lit tent.

  “Oh really, and what’d you do this time, huh?” Ethan continued unpacking his gear as he spoke.

  Phoebe let the whole story of making fun of Emily to Anke out in a rush and ended with a surprising statement.

  “You know I’m really kind of proud of her. I thought for sure she was going to run out of the country when she had to get on that helicopter, but she held her own. And she carried her weight in supplies just like everyone else. I really hate to say it, Ethan, but I think you did a good thing by bringing her. Her knowledge of different languages is going to be very useful, I think.”

  Ethan stopped unpacking and looked at Phoebe with raised eyebrows. “Did you just say I was right and you were wrong? My, my, the wonders will never cease. Well, I guess you’d better apologize to her, again.”

  “Yeah, but you don’t have to be so happy about it, you know. And yes, I’ll apologize, again. But, I’ll do it in the morning ‘cause I think our little greenhorn is plumb tuckered out. I heard snores coming from our tent on the way here.” Phoebe smiled and laughed as she left Ethan to his unpacking.

  Chapter Seven

  For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

  Ecclesiastes 3:1-22

  Locked in a dream, Emily ran. She prayed as she ran through the forest, vines catching at arms and legs, hidden tree roots threatened to trip her in her flight. She ran on, the sounds of violent fighting all around her. She ran towards a light, a break in the forest trees where the sunlight shone through. When she reached the bright sunlight, a huge mountain rose in front of her, its foothold so close she couldn’t see anything else. There was no place else to go but up, so she began to climb…

  Emily awoke with a start. Her chest pounded as if she’d just run a mile. As her racing heart and breathing slowed, she watched the early morning sun cast a faint glow into the tent.

  Phoebe slept on her cot across the wooden slat floor of the tent. Good, Emily thought, at least I didn’t sleep in. She wondered at the meaning of the dream but pushed it aside. The smell of her own body caught her attention. She’d forgotten how she’d gone to bed sweaty and fully clothed last night.

  Feeling the grime and dirt of the previous days travel and work, she felt the need for a long hot shower but quickly realized that was probably not going to happen. Cliff gave her a tour of the camp yesterday, and she knew where to find the makeshift latrines, but there were no showers, at least none she knew of.

  “Well, I’ll just have to find out how one gets cleaned up around here,” she said to herself as she rose from her cot.

  “There’s a makeshift shower near a waterfall not far from here. I’ve got some towels and soap in my trunk. If you give me a minute I’ll take you.” Phoebe spoke in a sleep filled voice.

  “Sorry, Phoebe, I didn’t mean to speak out loud and wake you up.”

  “It’s no matter. I was awake
. Just need some coffee.” Phoebe sat up on her cot as she stretched and yawned. She reminded Emily of a graceful, blond cat flexing itself.

  While she waited for Phoebe to get ready to leave, Emily went to get coffee for both of them. Following her nose, she walked toward the smell of freshly brewed coffee. In a tent set apart from the circle of the other ten or so tents, she found a makeshift kitchen. Inside, a middle aged native woman was cooking at what appeared to be a large camp stove. There were a few tables and benches in the center of the tent, while several shelves laden with food and supplies hugged the edges of the canvas walls. She made her way around the tables to the stove where two large coffee pots were brewing and she asked the woman in Spanish if she could help herself to a couple of cups.

  “Si, Senora,” the woman replied and then in English “the cups are here.”

  Emily took two tin coffee cups from a nearby shelf, and as she poured coffee she asked, “You can speak English?”

  “Yes, I was raised in a missionary orphanage in Campos, Peru. The missionaries taught me English. I am Mari.” The woman held her hand out to Emily. As they shook hands, Emily felt warmth coming from the woman.

  “I’m Emily. I just got here yesterday,” Emily stated.

  “Oh yes, I know who you are. You are the red-haired woman that Anke spoke of last night. We’ve never actually seen a woman with red hair such as yours before. It’s a shock, you see.”

  “Why is that?” Emily asked.

  “Because of the legends of the great red-haired kings of the ancient ones.”

  “What legends?” Her curiosity could not be contained.

  “Oh Miss, it is not wise to speak of the dead. Not like this. You will have to wait until a time when the legends can be revealed in reverence to them.”

  “And when would that be?” Emily tried to get Mari to tell her, but the woman waved her away.

  “I’ll let you know when the time is right, Miss.” With that Mari went back to cooking, clearly dismissing Emily.

  Back at her tent, Emily passed a cup of coffee to a grateful Phoebe.

  “Thanks. You know, I feel like I owe you another apology. What I said yesterday to Anke about you was just plain wrong. I do hope you’ll forgive me, again. I promise I’ll not be talking about you like that anymore. Besides, I want you to know you’ve really gained the respect of the entire team. You’ve been a real trooper. That was a mean trip yesterday. You handled it really well.”

  “Hmmm, let’s see. I’ll tell you what. You take me to the waterfall and loan me some soap and a towel and we’ll call it even. OK?” Emily was glad Phoebe understood how hard she was trying to fit in and that she apologized for her not so nice comments to Anke. She was willing to let it go, as she really needed Phoebe’s help if she was going to survive out here.

  The trek to the waterfall was thankfully short. Phoebe showed Emily a well-worn path alongside the stream that ran next to the camp. The waterfall was secluded but could be heard before it was seen. Emily took some pictures of it with her cell phone. It was a scenic and serene spot that took her breath away.

  The waterfall was a small drop of about twenty feet. In a clearing next to the waterfall stood a small structure with a kind of vinyl barrel atop it. Phoebe explained that the barrel was for catching rainwater that was treated with iodine for the express purpose of showering. Not one to be shy, Phoebe stripped down and dashed into the shower area, quickly pulling on the rope that released water from the barrel. Emily, a little more modest, left her underclothes on.

  Phoebe shook her head at Emily. “You’re gonna want to keep your clothes as dry as possible. It stays really humid here in the rainforest. If you keep your skin damp it’ll break down, and all kinds of nasty fungus and infections will set in.”

  “Oh, well in that case.” Emily stripped down and said a silent prayer that no one besides Phoebe could see her. She quickly cleaned off under the cool water. The shower felt good, and afterwards, as she dried off, Emily felt rejuvenated.

  While the two of them dried off on the bank of the stream, Phoebe explained their soap was all natural with no dyes or detergents. The team had to be very careful about what they brought into the ecosystem here. Everything they brought in with them would need to be carried out, including any trash they collected. She put on fresh khakis and clean socks with her hiking boots then braided her still damp hair.

  The two women made it back to camp just as everyone was sitting down to a breakfast of oatmeal and pan fried biscuits. Emily’s stomach rumbled, as she set down at a bench next to Ethan with her bowl.

  “I see you found the shower by the waterfall,” Ethan said with a smile and Emily blushed down to her toes.

  “Yes,” she said barely audible.

  “Don’t worry. We all avoid the waterfall in the mornings out of deference to Phoebe and now you. But you should be careful. I don’t want you going there without Phoebe with you. You have to watch for snakes and other wildlife, OK?”

  “Snakes? Oh, I didn’t think of that.” Emily turned a little pale.

  “Don’t worry. Phoebe is a pro. She knows what to look for. I trust her to take care of you.”

  Emily prayed again to herself for the Lord to watch over her. She would put her trust in him.

  “After we eat, could you join me in the common tent? We have all our computer and electronic equipment in that tent, and it’s where we do most of our research. I’d like to show you the photos of the Spaniard’s journals I have up on my laptop. I’m hoping you can help me decipher them. It’s going to take more than one set of eyes on them to find what we’re looking for, I’m afraid.”

  “Sure, I’d love to help in any way I can.” Emily was glad of the change in subjects and happy to have something to work on.

  The camp required a team effort to keep organized and clean. Emily helped Mari with the dishes, and Phoebe and Gary cleared the tables as the others swept out the kitchen area. Ethan was noticeably absent. Emily assumed he’d gone on to the common area after breakfast, so she finished helping with the clean-up and headed to meet him there.

  In the work tent, Emily found Ethan hunched over his laptop at a long table, in the middle of the large canvas tent. There was one map covering the table and Emily noted the map had several red and black marks with lines and colored pins sticking up on it. There were several other smaller maps spread out around the table.

  “I wouldn’t mess with those. Russ and Gary have them in a specific order. The maps are kind of their own personal property. They can get bent out of shape if something gets moved. You should’ve seen the ruckus they made when we had to move the camp away from the Meleke tribe.”

  “Why do you think the tribe made you move away?” Emily asked and then explained that Gary, Cliff and Russ had filled her in on that part.

  “My guess is they got spooked by something. Maybe we just pressed too hard for info about the Spaniards, or maybe Will overstepped himself when he asked about the lost cave or the giants. Who knows? The important thing is they allowed us to leave in peace. These tribes are very wary of outsiders. Will and I were the only team members allowed to come close. Still, we were restricted from actually going into their camp. Some of the men came to us first in our camp area.”

  “Strange. It’s hard to believe that there are still tribes out there that have virtually no contact with the modern world. So, will we be able to see the tribe again from here?”

  “Oh no, Emily. We cannot go near them or their homeland again. These tribes are a part of the eco system of this rainforest. They have no immunity to any common diseases. The common cold can kill them. Will and I had to be isolated and medically examined closely for six weeks to ensure we weren’t carrying any infectious diseases before the government would let us use local guides to come here. And even then we had to promise to share any research information we gleaned from the Meleke tribe with the government to help them protect all of the indigenous tribes here. The outside world is fast encroaching on these pe
ople, and some of the tribes have been decimated, either by a simple virus, or the loggers who are tearing down the forest. There is a strong movement in the Brazilian government to protect the lands and the people in it. It was a miracle we were allowed in to begin with. But Will and I somehow convinced the government officials that our purpose was genuine and that we had the experience and skill necessary to work with the natives without causing them any harm.”

  “So how did you get to meet the men from the tribe? Were they friendly?”

  “Anke and Mari have some ties to some of the other tribes in the area that are less isolated than the Meleke. They were able to help Will and me get an introduction. At first the men came armed with bows and arrows. They weren’t exactly friendly, but they were just as curious about us as we were about them. So, we managed to form a tentative relationship with them. Will was able to pick up on their language and converse with them easily. He took it harder than anyone when they told us to leave.”

  Emily changed the subject “Are Anke and Mari together, as in married or something?”

  Ethan chuckled “Yes, they’re married. They work together with Jorge on providing services to people on expeditions into the Amazon. We’re lucky to have them working with us.”

  “And you’ve been here almost two years now working with the Meleke tribe. It must’ve been hard to take when they sent you away.”